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The German automakers keep on making more and more powerful sport-utes – some capable of pulling jumbo-jets and driving up buildings – with seemingly no end in sight. But for one owner, a stock Mercedes-Benz G55 AMG just wasn't enough to outperform his neighbor's Porsche Cayenne Turbo, so he had the engine swapped out for the 720-hp 5.5L supercharged V8 from the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren. The result? 0-60 in 4.2 seconds in a package that's rivaled in its exotic-engined brutality only by the long-departed Countach-powered Lamborghini LM002.
Of course there's only one place on earth that such a unique creation could possibly call home: Abu Dhabi, the same über-wealthy gulf emirate where the obscenely wealthy built Ferrari theme parks and drive $1.4 million hyper-exotics with $14 million license plates. Where else?
See it to believe it in the gallery below and in the video after the jump.
[Source: Rennteam.com via OmniAuto.it]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Andrew @ Feb 28th 2008 6:04PM
I'd take the Lambo LM 002 over this.
Eddie @ Feb 28th 2008 6:12PM
This is even more badass than the SLR powered SLK55 some guy owns in Dubai.
jdbtxyz @ Feb 28th 2008 6:16PM
and how do we know it's not just a badge? I'd like to see pics of the engine bay.
Omar @ Feb 29th 2008 5:05AM
Thats what i thought too from the photos, but watch the video it's got images of the bay.
madgamer @ Feb 28th 2008 6:25PM
There are a number of pics of the engine bay if you watch the youtube video right below the pics.
StickShift @ Feb 28th 2008 6:31PM
Where exactly does one find a spare SLR McLaren motor kicking around? Its not like you get one out of Summit Racing after all....
TwinTurbo3000GT @ Feb 28th 2008 6:47PM
yes it's impressive, but couldnt they have picked a better soundtrack? lol
I bet he could have bought another g-wagon with how much that powerplant ran him.
Sam @ Feb 28th 2008 7:42PM
I'm a little skeptical. Just because someone puts a McLaren badge on his G55 doesn't mean he slapped the SLR engine into it. I thought you had some pictures of the engine bay or something. How many Cobra symbols have I seen on V6 or GT Mustangs? How many AMG symbols have I seen on E320s? The list goes on and on. I'll believe this has the McLaren engine when I see some pictures with the hood up.
Tragedy @ Feb 28th 2008 7:47PM
Hey Sam...WATCH THE VIDEO. Somebody already said that a few posts up.
PirateTaco @ Feb 28th 2008 7:57PM
1.McLaren didn't build the engine AMG did
2.the SLR only has 626hp or 650hp depending on whether the car is a 722 or not.
Eric Biran @ Feb 28th 2008 11:05PM
I'm with you PirateTaco. The G55 weighs 5622 lbs. already, even with over 600 hp, I have extreme doubts that it could get to 60mph in 4.2 sec when the 500 hp model does so in around 5.5 sec.
nagmashot @ Feb 29th 2008 1:32AM
thats correct the SLR engine is build by AMG McLaren stick it only into the car..
DIRETTORE @ Feb 28th 2008 9:53PM
*
This vehicle was originally designed for the German military before the war.
Its older than the Beatles & the Rolling Stones for heavens sake!
A truly competent & capable machine, a speed demon sports car it aint!
I could go into endless detail why this is a very bad idea, but I'll jst save my breath & wait for the crash video next week.
nagmashot @ Feb 29th 2008 1:20AM
the vehicle was designed as farmer and hunter off roader and went into production in 1979, it is a codevelopment between Mercedes and Steyer-Puch. Later it join the military in many nation(15)..including USA(USMC).
The only reason why it is still in production is the wide military use all around the world and the need for spare parts. At the BW it replaced the VW Iltis and the KraKa
JOHN @ Feb 28th 2008 11:15PM
Don't worry, they'll dry up one of these days :)
Ken @ Feb 29th 2008 12:44AM
I applaud whoever did that. Its actually tasteful and was done by someone who actually likes cars...not just spending and showing off their money (think of those 'things' that are coming out of Russia...ugh)
needapedia @ Feb 29th 2008 1:11AM
The G-wagon was not designed to be a sports car. It was designed to take on the most challenging off-road terrain, competing against four wheel drive vehicles such as the Land Rover Defender. No doubt, it would be interesting to see how fast it would be.
www.needapedia.com/cars
nagmashot @ Feb 29th 2008 1:31AM
Why did the guy not simple buy a Brabus G V12 with 6.2l V12 TwinTurbo engine .. looks much cooler as this one
With 612hp it is tested with 4.7s 0-100km/h(62mph) 12.3s 0-160km/h (100mph) with a electronic limited topspeed of 240km/h (150mph)
http://www.autobild.de/ir_img/344542_26d69c242f.jpg
http://www.autobild.de/ir_img/344551_9444d2392e.jpg
fizzandpop @ Feb 29th 2008 4:46PM
Because "other" people own those. This guy wants a one-off
MF @ Feb 29th 2008 9:31AM
I think it's supposed to be 620 horsepower, not 720, since even the track-only 722 GT version makes only 680 hp.